Are You Coming Back?
by Leah Sora-Parker
Summary: ""Who are you?" Oh, I'm a random teenager who didn't listen to his father and messed with said father's time machine and got sent to the past and is now wandering around the area for no apparent reason. Talk about awkward." *Hope/Arthur*AU*The actual story is more serious.*For KatnissCahill's Time Travel/Machine Contest*


"Stay away."

Those were the only words he ever heard from his father.

Stay away from strangers.

Stay away from those knives in the kitchen.

Stay away from his work.

Stay away from his "two-timing prostitute of a mother."

Stay away from him.

This time, he had been told to stay away from his father's new invention: the time machine.

* * *

(He had never been that good at listening.)

* * *

Touch.

_WhiiiiiiiiiIIIIIIIIIIIIRRRRRRRRR!_

* * *

A scream went through the house.

* * *

(No one was there to hear it.)

* * *

Waking up, he saw green all around him. He stumbled away from the smoking machine and walked...

And walked...

And walked...

And walked...

Until he finally reached a clearing by the sea. He must have roughly been in the early 2000's era because of all heavy pollution he could see off in the distance and because the state of Massachusetts had never looked so... 2000's-ish.

That and the fact that a girl with a 'Class of 2018' t-shirt was right in front of him.

"Um..."

"Who are you?"

Oh, I'm a random teenager who didn't listen to his father and messed with said father's time machine and got sent to the past and is now wandering around the area for no apparent reason.

Talk about awkward.

"I-I'm Arthur."

"I'm Hope."

"..."

"..."

"W-well, I should really get going. My father is probably looking for me." _Not._

"Wait!"

"W-what?"

"Are you coming back?"

He looked into her eyes, noticing the pretty jade green color. "Yes."

Then he made his way back to the cooled off time machine and started it up. After a long moment of sputtered coughing and wheezing, it was able to send him back to his time. He stepped out of the machine into the room.

His father wasn't there.

Later, when his father asked what he did that day, he replied, "Nothing."

* * *

(Strangely, out of every lie he told that day, the one that hurt the most was when he told the girl he'd visit her again.)

* * *

Two years later, he was in the same situation again. Ever since the first 'trip' he took, the machine could never start up. His father said it was unexplained overheating of the engine.

"Stay away."

Ah, those words again.

This time, though, he was prepared.

* * *

The girl appeared not to have changed with the exception of having an older air about her.

He said hi.

She said welcome back.

They spent the rest of the afternoon together.

"Are you coming back?"

"Yes."

* * *

Another year, another attempt at time travel.

"Stay away."

Like that would ever happen.

* * *

This time, when he saw her, she was with another guy (and a girl, but she wasn't really important).

Go up and talk to her or run like hell.

He ran like hell.

"Hey, Arthur!"

...too bad she was such an angel.

* * *

(It turned out that the other guy and unimportant girl were dating. He'd never felt more relieved in his life.)

* * *

When his father came home that day, he was told that he had just gone over selling prices over the machine.

They fought.

He left.

* * *

(War would soon start and all of time would be subject to it.)

* * *

He visited her the day before the war started.

"Hey Arthur."

"Hope..."

She said nothing, merely looking at him and noticing everything. "Are you coming back?"

"I-I... wait for me, please."

"I'll wait for you forever."

They shared their first kiss in the clearing by the sea.

* * *

A year after the war (and after he last saw her), he was finally able to travel back. He had feared for her safety, seeing as the US had been pretty hurt by the war.

Walking through the tiny, summer town that she always vacationed at, he couldn't find her.

The buildings were in ruins.

Ash covered the earth.

Silence ruled the air.

He saw the words, "Project: Pompeii Bomb" on a scrap of paper floating down the deserted sidewalk.

He began to run.

And over by the sea, in a small clearing, was the statue of a girl-no, a woman, hands clasp in a praying sort of gesture, eyes gazing at the sea, waiting.

A single tear ran down her cheek, suspended forever in ash.

It was an ash-grey Wednesday.

* * *

(Ironically, it was also the same day they met.)

* * *

Now he was pacing, about to take on the mission of a lifetime, maybe two.

He would set things right.

He would make sure that never happened.

He would rewrite history.

He would erase their meeting.

* * *

"Stay away."

Those were the only words he ever heard from his father.

Stay away from strangers.

Stay away from those knives in the kitchen.

Stay away from his work.

Stay away from his "two-timing prostitute of a mother."

Stay away from him.

This time, he had been told to stay away from his father's new invention: the time machine.

This time, he listened.

* * *

(He began to have bad dreams: time travel, war, an ash-covered town, a jade-eyed girl, a crying statue.)

* * *

(He never told anyone.)

* * *

Two years later, he and his father were billionaires, selling the first ever successful time machine.

* * *

(War never started.)

* * *

He had everything he could ever want.

* * *

(Except what he wanted most.)

* * *

He had tons and tons of money.

* * *

(What was the use if he didn't use it?)

* * *

Girls flocked to him like bees to honey.

* * *

(They never had her jade-green eyes.)

* * *

He never dated.

* * *

(When asked why, he would say, "I haven't met her yet.")

* * *

Two more years, and he 'first' attempted his to time travel too.

He was met with a girl with jade-eyes.

* * *

"Welcome back."

"...do I know you?"

"No."

"Oh."

"I'm Hope."

"I'm Arthur."

* * *

One second later, he decided to stay.

* * *

_"Welcome back."_

_"I'm home."_

**FIN**

* * *

**This is for KatnissCahill's Time Travel/Machine Contest if you couldn't tell. It was almost a thousand words but just stopped short (the reason it says 1000+ words is because of the AN). I hope you enjoyed it! I might do an epilogue later...**

**Also, to clear up confusion, the very end ("Welcome back."/"I'm home.") is supposed to be like the ghosts of the old Arthur and Hope talking to each other when the new Arthur and Hope are talking to each other. Sorry if it's confusing!**


End file.
